Understanding Medical Payment Coverage on Your Auto Insurance Policy
Many auto insurance policies include medical payment coverage. That coverage is there to provide money to pay for medical bills for injuries suffered as a result of an auto collision. When dealing with insurance companies and hospitals, many times the medical payment coverage gets mixed in with health insurance coverage, and not to the injured party’s benefit.
When you are injured in an auto accident and you go to the emergency room, hospitals make you sign paperwork, and they will ask about your auto insurance. And they are very quick to jump out and bill your medical payment coverage in the hopes of getting paid under that coverage, rather than your health insurance. The reason is the hospital and your health insurance company likely already have a negotiated contract that spells out how much the hospital will be paid for medical services.
However, the hospital will often bill your auto insurance under medical payment coverage in the hope that since there is no existing contract, the auto insurance company will cover the full amount of the medical bills, rather than the negotiated rates established with your health insurance. Oftentimes this is exactly what happens, because your auto insurance company is quick to process the bills under the medical payment coverage to close out your claim. Usually, medical payment coverage is in the $1,000 to $5,000 range, although there are insurance companies who will offer more.
At Willis, Willis & Rizzi our concern with this tactic is that the medical payment coverage is now gone, and you didn’t even know what happened! And in some situations, you may need to see your primary care doctor again and have additional tests or treatment that may not be covered under your health insurance. But you have some coverage under your medical payment coverage, right? But then you find out your auto insurance company already paid out the money from your medical payment coverage!
Don’t try and go it alone, call us today!
Having medical payment coverage is one thing, but knowing how to deal with it is another. And this is why it is important to hire a personal injury attorney who is navigating all of these insurance complexities. You have enough going on to try and get better from your injuries or help a family member who has been injured. You don’t have time to try to navigate the insurance companies and who should be billing who, and what has been paid and by whom, and what ultimately is in your best interest.
If you think about football and your in the blue tent on the sidelines trying to figure out what is going on and you have your health insurance company, your auto insurance company, the hospital, and other medical providers out on the field doing what they think is best for THEM, and you’re not involved in the conversation. So, you should hire someone who is outside of the blue tent, out on the field running the show on your behalf because at the end of the day, you are the injured party.
Call Willis, Willis & Rizzi today at 330-535-2000 or fill out the inquiry form on this page and speak to a personal injury attorney.
